Ana Dixon. Originally the name of Daryl Dixon's lesser known, younger sister. Ana had a daughter, but didn't survive the child birth because they couldn't make it to the hospital. Since no one knew who the father was, Daryl and Merle took care of her and made sure she was safe. Daryl named her Ana, in remembrance of his sister, the one who made sure he kept a good morality unlike his brother. Daryl always stood up to their abusive father and brother when they threatened both their sister and their niece. It has now been about 2 months since the outbreak and little Ana is now 12 years old.
Will Ana be a strength or a weakness to Daryl and the group on the road of the apocalypse?
(Based off of The Walking Dead Season 1)
DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything other than my character and my ideas
***
Author's note- I wrote this book because Daryl reminds me of my uncle and we were really close and everything and I can't really see him anymore but that's a long story. I am not copying anyone if anyone else did use this idea.
Also please be active and comment, it's boring having no comments and I need friends 😂
Also, I feel like a cringey writer for how I wrote some of Daryl's lines but that's actually how he talks in this season sooo...
*****
"Why is this deer going so damn fast?"
"Quit yer complainin' Ana, we're gonna get 'em."
My Uncle Daryl and I have been tracking this one deer for miles and I think we're gonna catch it soon. He's already shot it 3 times so it's gotta be slowing down right about now.
Daryl and I walk past a giant rock to see that same deer on the ground with a huge gash in it's neck with a walker sprawled out on the ground next to it, presumably the one who gave it the gash in the first place.
"Son of a bitch, that's my deer!" He walks over to the walker on the ground. "Look at it all gnawed on by this filthy, disease-bearing, motherless, poxy, bastard!" He finished, kicking the walker with each adjective.
"Calm down son, that's not helping." Tried Dale.
"What do you know about it, old man? Why don't you take that stupid hat and go back to 'On Golden Pond'. Ugh, we've been tracking this deer for miles... 'gonna track it back to camp- cook us up some venison. What do you think? You think we can cut around this chewed up part right here?"
"Naw, that's too risky." I answered gloomily.
"That's a damn shame. We got some squirrel- 'bout a dozen or so. That'll have to do." Uncle Daryl responded.
Then the walker's detached head started chomping its teeth together.
"Oh, god." Said Amy.
"Oh come on people, what the hell?"
"It's gotta be the brain..." I said.
"Don't y'all know nothing?" Added Uncle Daryl. I gave him a look that told him he did need to stop.
"Where's Merle" I asked Dale. He held a face of sympathy that put an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach as my eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"Merle! Get your ugly ass out here!" Daryl interrupted, calling out for him while stomping over to the RV. "Ana and I got us some squirrel! Let's stew 'em up."
"Daryl, slow up a bit. I need to talk to you." Said Shane.
"About what?"
"About Merle. There was a- uh, there was a problem in Atlanta." Shane explained. Daryl looked down at the ground for a moment.
"...he dead?" I asked, looking at Dale.
"Not sure."
"He either is or he ain't."
"No easy way to say this so I'll just say it." Said a stranger.
"Who're you?" Asked Uncle Daryl.
"Rick Grimes." He answered. Carl told me that was his dad's name once.
"Rick Grimes," started Daryl. "You got something you wanna tell me?"
"Your brother, and uncle," the man said looking at me for the uncle part. "Was a danger to us all, so I handcuffed him to a roof, hooked him to a piece of metal. He's still there."
"Hold on. Let me process this. You're saying you handcuffed my brother to a roof?! And you left him there!?"
"Yeah," replied Rick Grimes.
Uncle Daryl lunged towards the man but Shane stopped him.
"Hey!" Shane shouted.
"Watch the knife!" T-Dog added.
I was too in shock to move. I couldn't believe that half of the only family I had left was gone. I didn't care that he was a shitty person, he was still family.
"Okay, okay." Said Shane.
"You'd best let me go!"
"Nah I think it's better if I don't." Responded Shane.
"Ogh, choke hold's illegal!"
"Well you can file a complaint."
"Come on man, we can keep this up all day." Said the new guy. "I'd like to have a calm discussion about this topic. Do you think we can manage that?"
Dark didn't answer.
"Do you think we can manage that?" He repeated.
"Hmm?" Added Shane.
"Yeah." He said finally.
"What I did was not on a whim. Your brother does not work, and play well with others."
"It's not Rick's fault. I had the key. I dropped it." Said T-Dog.
"You couldn't pick it up?" Asked Daryl, confused as to why they were in the situation that they were in.
"Well I dropped it down a drain." He added.
"If that's supposed to make me feel better, it don't."
"Maybe this will. Look, I chained the door to the roof so the geeks couldn't get at him, with a padlock." Glenn said.
"That's gotta count for something." Said Rick.
"Hell with all of y'all... just tell me where he is- so's I can go gettem."
"He'll show you. Isn't that right?" Said Lori. She paused until he answered, then went back into the RV.
"I'm going back." He said.
*****
Rick and Shane were arguing about him going to get Merle.
"...I'm not saying to hell with anybody, not you and especially not Lori."
"Tell her that."
"She already knows."
"Well look I don't okay Rick? So could you just- could you just throw me a bone here man? Could you just tell me why? Why would you risk your life for a douche bag like Merle Dixon?" Said Shane.
"Hey!" I said.
"Choose your words more carefully." Added Uncle Daryl.
"No, I did" said Shane. "Douche Bag's what I meant. Merle Dixon- that guy wouldn't give you a glass of water if you were dying of thirst."
"What he would or wouldn't do doesn't interest me, I can't let a man die of thirst-Me. Thirst, and exposure. We left him like an animal caught in a trap, that's no way for anything to die, let alone a human being."
"So you and Daryl? That's your big plan?" Said Lori.
"And me!" I yelled.
"Naw you're stayin here," argued Uncle Daryl.
"I can handle myself just fine, just let me come!" I begged.
"No, ion want you gettin' infected or killed."
"But I help you and Uncle Merle stay in check! He'll be a lot easier to work with if I'm there!" I whined.
"She's got a point there." Said Andrea.
"Thank you!" I replied. She laughed.
"Y'all really wanna risk a 12 year old's life out there?" Uncle Daryl pointed out.
"Your Uncle's right, don't you think you should help hold down fort here and protect the rest of us,? Besides I'm sure Carl and Sophia don't want you to leave them alone." Dale said.
"Whatever." I rolled my eyes.
"Okay, so it's right back to just you and Daryl?" Asked Lori again.
Then he looked to Glenn silently asking to come with.
"Oh, come on." Argued Glenn.
"You know the way, you've been there before. In and out- no problem, said so yourself." Stated the man. "It's not fair of me to ask, I know that but I'd feel a lot better with you along, and I know she would too." He pointed towards Lori at the end.
"That's just great, now you're gonna risk 3 men huh?" Said Shane.
"4" said T-Dog.
"Puh, my day just keeps gettin' better and better now don't it?" Daryl started.
"Be nice." I said to him.
"Whatever." He mumbled.
"You see anyone else stepping up here to save your brother's cracker ass?" Said T-dog.
"Me?!" I said.
"NO." Said Uncle Daryl sternly.
"That's 4" said Dale.
"It's not just 4," Nagged Shane. "You're puttin every single one of us at risk here, just know that Rick. I mean come on, you saw that walker, it was here it was in camp. They're moving outta the cities, they come back, we need every able body we got. We need em here, we need em to protect camp."
"Seems to me like what you really need most here are more guns."
"Right, the guns." Said Glenn.
"Wait, what guns?" Asked Shane.
Then Rick listed that he had over 20 guns and added that he also had 700 rounds of ammo in the bag too. He said he left them in a bag on the street back in Atlanta.
"You went through hell to find us. You just got here. Now you're gonna turn back around and leave?" Lori spoke.
"Dad, I don't want you to go." Carl complained.
"To hell with the guns, Shane is right. Merle Dixon? He isn't worth one of your lives, even if you throw in guns. Tell me, make me understand." Lori begged.
"I owe a debt, to a man I met, and his little boy. Lori if they hadn't taken me in, I'd have died. It's because of them that I made it back to you at all. They said they'd follow me back to Atlanta. And they're gonna fall into the same trap I did if I don't warn them."
"What's stopping you?"
"The walkie-talkie, the one in the bag I dropped. He's got the other one, our plan was to connect when they got closer."
"These're our walkies?" Shane clarified.
"So use the CB, what's wrong with that?" Asked Andrea.
"The CB's fine. It's the walkies that suck to crap. Date back to the 70's, don't match any other bandwidth, not even the scanners to our cars." Answered Shane.
"I need that bag." Rick told her. Then he walked over to Carl and crouched down to his level. "Okay?" Carl nodded in agreement. "Alright."
*****
Uncle Daryl waited in the back of the van, he paced around impatiently.
Rick and T-Dog were talking to Dale asking for his bolt cutters to cut the handcuffs off of Uncle Merle's hand.
"Come on le's go!" Yelled Uncle Daryl. Then I went up and hugged him real quick. "You know I'll be fine."
"I know, but just in case."
"Okay, see you later, bug."
"See you later."
I overheard Dale whisper to Jim. "You know I thought Daryl was just as bad as his brother until I saw how he was with that little girl."
I ran over to the tent that I knew Carl was in to go and hang out with him since he's the person I'm the closest with here other than Uncle Daryl and I don't really like having to put effort into making new relationships.
I saw Lori going in there so I waited for her to come out. When she did I went in and started talking to Carl.
"So what'd she say?" I asked.
"She just talked to me about how the guys were leaving and that she was kind of worried so I told her they'd be fine." He replied sitting up on the bed. I sat criss cross applesauce on the floor next to his bed.
"Yeah, Uncle Daryl's with them, they should definitely be fine."
"Yeah."
"Do you know where Sophia is?" I asked him.
"I think she's in her tent."
"Oh, ok."
Then we talked and hung out for about an hour.
Later Shane came in to check on us.
"Hey you guys, so whats going on here?" He asked.
"We're just talking, hangin' out." I answered.
"You guys wanna go catch some frogs?" Shane suggested.
"Yes!" Carl and I both said in unison.
Then we went down to the pond and Shane started explaining to us how we were going to catch them.
We set everything up and just sat down and waited for a little bit.
"I'm not getting anything." Carl said.
"Yeah, being all wily, staying submerged. Little suckers. They know something's up, that's what's going on. Just gonna have to do this the old fashioned way. Alright little man, look, you are- you are the key in all this, okay?"
"Okay then I guess I'll just watch...Not like I wanted to catch any frogs anyways..."
"All I'm gonna do is I'm gonna go after 1 of em, all right? Scare the rest of them off, they're all gonna scatter, gonna drive em your way. Kay?" They ignored me.
"Alright."
"What you need to do is you need to round up every bad boy you see, alright? You with me?"
"Yeah,"
"Hells yeah!"
"Yeah!"
"Give me your mean face!"
Then the both of them scrunched up their faces and started growling. I just laughed.
"Yes sir, you ready?"
"Yeah!"
"Are you ready? Here we go boy, here we go."
Then Shane had waited for a second, then he started splashing a bunch of water towards mine and Carl's way.
"All right little man, they're coming your way! They're comin' your way, come on! Catch them frooooogs! Catch them froooogs! Get 'em! Get that net in there and get 'em! Come on, get in there and get 'em! They're coming little man now get 'em, get that net in there 'n gettem!" He just went on and on, Carl and I just kept on giggling.
Then Carl brought up the net.
"What'd you got, what'd you got, what'd you got?!"
Nothing was in the net.
"Dirt." I said.
"Oh boy, all right, we've got to start over. Come on, let's find this bucket." He said. I helped. We all laughed.
"Hey Carl? What did I tell you about not leaving Dale's sight?" Said Lori walking by.
"But Shane said we could catch frogs, remember?" Reminded Carl.
"It doesn't matter what Shane says, it matters what I say. Go on back to camp." That made Carl sigh. He started walking away.
"You really have to start being all bitchy just cause you find out your husbands alive?" I asked, rhetorically, while passing by her, following Carl. She made a shocked face and scoffed, then looked to Shane.
"She said it not me." Shane defended.
"She's definitely a Dixon, that's for sure."
*****
I liked Carl. He was good. I just wished he hadn't liked me so much, I'm- not exactly as good. I don't want him to be like me. I kill things, I cuss, I do things no other 12 year old girl should have to do. I had to grow up earlier than I should have.
I don't want him to have to grow up. It's horrible. It gives you responsibilities. It makes you the one to have to protect everyone you love- just because they're protecting you, doesn't mean they don't need protecting too.
Carl's going to realize that sometime. Then he's gonna be just like me. Yeah it'd be pretty useful if he were like me but I just don't want that for him. I try not to have serious grownup type talks with him like I do with the rest of the group, yeah I talk about serious personal stuff with him but that's just cause he's like my best friend now. It's either him or Sophia but I think she's already found an apocalypse best friend in Eliza, Morales's daughter.
"Carl?" We were sitting near the trees but we weren't too far to where Dale couldn't see us. Didn't want Lori bitching on us again about that.
"What?"
"Do you think my dad's out here somewhere? Alive?"
"I don't know, I mean you don't know who he is or what he looks like so I don't think you'd be able to tell."
"Yeah. I think there might be a picture or something that would tell me who he is in the locket my mom wore but of course it's got a lock on it so I can't open it." I said showing him the locket around my neck that used to be around my mom's.
"That has to suck."
"Yeah... I've tried getting it open multiple times with bobby pins, sticks, rocks, and a ton of other stuff. Obviously I failed." Then I thought for a moment. "I keep thinking maybe one day I'll find him and he'll see the locket and know I'm his daughter."
"Yeah. That could happen."
"What if I don't like him?"
"Why do you keep asking me about this? I don't know anything about your dad."
"I know I just- I just needa talk about it to someone, and Daryl doesn't like talking about my mom. Says it's too emotional for him. But still, what if you don't like him? What if he's a screw up and there's a reason my uncle never told me about him? What if I end up just like him and you all hate me?"
"We wouldn't hate you Ana, it's possible we might dislike him but we wouldn't put any of it on you. You're a good person Ana. You'd never do anything to hurt us whether it was on purpose or on accident. That's what matters." That sounded nice coming from him.
"What if-"
"You're the best person I know Ana. You're good and nice and don't let people walk all over you and you try to have a good relationship with everyone. I know you Ana, maybe only for 2 months but I know you. You'd always do what you think is best for us." I smiled at him then gave him a kiss on the cheek.
"Ewww what'd you do that for?" He whined. I laughed.
Then Carl and I got up and walked over to the fire pit.
A couple minutes later Andrea and Amy came back from the lake with a ton of fish.
"Hey check it out! Ladies, because of you my children will eat tonight. Thank you." Morales said.
"Thank Dale, it's his canoe and gear."
"Mom look! Look at all the fish!" Carl exclaimed.
Andrea moved the fish closer to Lori.
"Thank you." She was clearly a little disgusted by the fish. I laughed a little bit.
"Whoa." He got closer to the fish to touch them.
"Yeah whoa, where'd you two learn to do that?" Said Lori.
"Our Dad." Amy answered.
"Can you teach me how to do that?" asked Carl.
"Me too?" I asked.
"Sure, I'll teach you two all about nail knots and stuff." Then she looked to Lori. "If that's okay?"
"You won't catch me arguing." Lori responded, still in aw over the tons of fish they had caught.
"Hey Dale, when's the last time you oiled those line reels? They are a disgrace." Amy asked Dale as he came by with concern on his face.
"I, uh- I don't want to alarm anyone, but we may have a bit of a problem." Dale then turned and pointed behind him to reveal Jim digging into the ground, beyond the trees.
We had all walked up to where Jim was. We saw a couple holes that had appeared to have been dug up by him.
"Hey Jim? Jim, why don't you hold up, all right? Just give me a second here please?" Shane started.
"What do you want?" He responded.
"We're all just a little concerned that's all."
"Dale says you been out here for hours." Morales added.
"So?"
"So why are you digging?" Shane said cutting to the point. "What? You heading to China, Jim?"
"What does it matter? I'm not hurtin' anyone."
"Yeah except maybe yourself. It's a- it's a hundred degrees today! You can't keep this up." Dale pointed out.
"Sure I can. Watch me!"
"Jim, they're not gonna say it so I will. You're scarin' people. You're scarin' my son, and Carol's daughter, possibly Daryl's niece." Lori told him.
"I ain't scared a nothin'." I said on my part.
"They got nothing to be scared of. I mean, what the hell, people? I'm out here by myself. Why don't you all just go and leave me the hell alone?" It was quiet for a couple seconds.
"We think that you need to take a break, okay?" Shane tried. "Why don't you go and get yourself in the shade? Some food maybe. I- I'll tell you what, maybe in a little bit, I'll come out here. I'll help you myself. Jim, just tell me what it's about. Why don't you just go ahead and give me that shovel?"
"Or what?"
"There is no 'or what'. I'm asking you. I'm coming to you, and I'm asking you please. I don't wanna have to take it from you."
"And if I don't, then what? Then you're gonna beat my face in like Ed Peletier aren't you? Ya'll seen his face, huh? What's left of it. See now that's what happens when someone crosses you."
"That was different Jim."
"You weren't there." Amy started. "Ed was out of control, he was hurting his wife."
"That is their marriage, that is not his!" Shouted Jim, pointing to Shane. "He is not judge and jury. Who voted you king boss huh?"
"Jim, I'm not here to argue with you, just give me the shovel okay?"
"No no no."
"Jim, just give me the-" then Jim swung the shovel at Shane. Then Shane dodged and pummeled him to the ground. "Jim! Okay, shh shhh."
"YOU GOT NO RIGHT!"
"Stop! Shh." Shane held him to the ground.
"YOU GOT NO RIGHT!" Jim struggled.
"Jim, just stop it! Hey hey hey hey hey!"
"DON'T!"
"JIM! Jim. Nobody's gonna hurt you. You hear me? Shh. Jim, Nobody is gonna hurt you, okay?"
"That's a lie, that's the biggest lie there is. I told that to my wife and two boys. I said it a hundred times. It didn't matter. They came outta nowhere, dozens of 'em. Just pulled 'em right outta my hands. You know the only reason I got away was cause the dead were too busy eating my family." He sighed.
*****
I went out into the woods, just walking. Looking for any animals to hunt. Looking to see if any more walkers were coming up here from the city. I just had and AK-47. Thought I'd only shoot it if I came across an animal. I see a walker I'd just bash its head in. Didn't want that much noise.
I found 4 walkers all together. I grabbed my knife and threw it at one of their heads, then I kicked the closest one in the knee so it'd fall to the ground then I swung the gun to hit another in the head as I bashed the head of the walker I had just kicked to the ground with my foot, next I bent down and grabbed my knife and walked over to the last one which was the farthest away, and I kicked it in the side of the knee so it'd fall to the ground just like the 2nd did and I crouched down to stab it in the head.
Once again, I found another walker. I bashed it's head in with the end of my gun.
I kept on finding walkers. I needed to warn the camp that this place wasn't going to be a safe place for long.
Later, when I got back to camp. I saw Carl and Sophia following Shane towards the lake.
"Ana! Come on, we're gonna clean the fish so we can cook 'em!" Sophia said.
"Cool, lets go!"
We got to the lake and Shane showed us how we needed to clean the fish. I never really went fishing. Daryl and I only ever went hunting, so I didn't really know about how to clean a fish but it can't be that hard.
After a couple of fish had been gutted, I decided to tell Shane about the walkers.
"Shane, I need to tell you something."
"What is it?" Then I gestured to him that we should head a little bit away from the other two.
"I found more walkers out in the woods. They're headed away from the city. Towards here. We need to move our camp as soon as the others get back, and we need to be real cautious until then. I don't want anyone getting hurt, 'specially not Carl." I explained to him.
I felt weirdly mature talking about this to Shane but I needed to tell someone and he kinda is the leader here. I mean it might change sooner or later because of Carl's dad, but still, Shane's the leader for now so I told him.
"Thank you for telling me, I'll make sure to tell the others about this and be careful."
"No problem." I said turning back to walk over to Carl and Sophia.
"I have a question." He stated, then I turned around again to face him.
"Hm?"
"You have feelings for Carl?" He asked, smiling. I pressed my lips together not wanting to tell him.
"That information's classified." I said then running away and heading back to Sophia and Carl. He laughed.
Shane was cool. I liked him.
"What were you guys talking about?" Carl asked.
"That informations classified." Shane said, then looking to me.
"Just be careful, and try to stay close to the center of camp." I advised to them.
"Why?" Sophia asked.
"Because I said so." I snapped.
"We just need everyone to be cautious. Okay?" Shane told them.
"Okay." Carl sighed.
Then we all got back to gutting and cleaning the fish.
Later we went to go start frying them at the fire. Shane and Carl went to go ask Jim if he wanted to join. I stayed by the fire and sat for a moment, waiting for Carl and Sophia to get back. When they did we put the fish on sticks and cooked them above the fire like they were marshmallows.
"To be honest I never really liked fish, or any seafood for that matter. But now, I guess food is food. You have to eat what you can get. I'm just- not gonna enjoy it very much." I told them. They chuckled a little bit.
As we cooked more and more fish, more of the camp started to join in and when we finally cooked all of it, we all started eating. Though by then the sun had already gone down, and Uncle Daryl, Glenn, T-Dog, and Rick weren't back with Uncle Merle yet. I really hope they found him.
"Pass the fish please." Said Sophia.
"Here you go." Carol said.
"Man oh man, that's good." Shane complimented. Kinda complimented himself though since he was one of the main ones cooking it. "Whew, I miss this."
Everyone was eating and the only sound you could here right now were forks clinking their plates and maybe mouths chewing for a couple of the cow eaters.
"I've gotta ask you man, it's been driving me crazy." Morales said breaking the silence.
"What?" Dale asked.
"That watch." He pointed to him.
"What's wrong with my watch?" He concerned.
"I see you, every day, the same time, winding that thing like a village priest saying mass."
"I've wondered this myself." Jacqui added.
"Really? I never noticed it." I muttered.
"How could you not?" Morales asked me.
"I'm missing the point." Said Dale.
"Unless I've misread the signs, the world seems to have come to an end. At least hit a speed bump for a good long while." Jacqui suggested.
"But there's you, every day, winding that stupid watch." Morales went on.
"Time- It's importantly keep track isn't it? The days at least, don't you think? Andrea? Back me up here." Dale tried. Andrea chuckled. "I like- uh- I like what a father said to son when he gave him a watch. That had been handed down through generations. He said 'I give you the mausoleum, of all hope and desire, which will fit all your individual needs no better than it did mine or my father's before me. I give it to you, not that you remember time, but that you may forget it for a moment now and then and not spend all of your breath trying to conquer it.'"
Everyone was smiling at the wise words just said by Dale.
"You are so weird." Amy said, causing laughter to come from everyone.
"It's not me, it's uh, Faulkner. William Faulkner. Maybe my bad paraphrasing."
Then Amy got up to leave.
"Where're you going?" Andrea asked.
"I have to pee. Geez you try to be discreet around here..." Everyone laughed at her answer.
A couple minutes later, everyone heard Amy scream from the RV.
Oh no.
We looked over to see a walker biting on her arm.
"Damn it!" I yelled. "I didn't think there were this many!"
I got out my rifle and started shooting. Then I saw Uncle Daryl, Glenn, T-Dog, and Rick. But no Merle. I should've known he wouldn't come back with them. Probably dead. Oh god I hope that didn't happen. Not just because it would mean Merle would be dead but because of the fact that Daryl would have had to have found him like that.
My thoughts had distracted me for too long, a walker sneaked up behind me and grabbed on to me and of course started trying to bite me. I struggled to get it off me.
"ANA!" Carl screamed.
It caught Uncle Daryl's attention and he shot the walker before it could bite me. Another one got near me and I hit it in the head with the back of my gun. Then I went back to shooting.
Carl ran to his father and gave him a hug as Andrea ran to Amy.
"Uncle Daryl!" I yelled, running back to him to give him a hug, after all the walkers had been killed. "Where's Uncle Merle?" I asked.
"We couldn't find him. We thought he'd of come back here, he took our truck. We had to run. He's not here?"
"No." I tried not to cry. He was a dick but he was still my uncle and I still cared for him.
I'm scared for Merle. I know he's tough and I shouldn't be scared or worried for him but I can't help it.
I hate the feeling of fear. I just do. It makes me feel all weak and helpless.
"AMY! Amy..." Andrea wailed repeatedly, as Amy took her final breaths.
"...I remember why I dug the holes."